Alhaji Olalekan Qaasim Ayodele takes on a tour on Mr Presidents achievements on TRANSPORTATION Please ENJOY!!! Not much is known of any significant achievement of the Buhari administration in the transportation sector. The high inflation and scarcity at the time meant that vehicles and spare parts were either in short supply or too expensive. In a research commissioned by the African Association for Public Administration and Management (AAPAM) and carried out by the members of the Department of Public Administration in Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife, they noted the following: “The number of all categories of vehicles increased steadily up to 1984 and declined sharply thereafter. The shortage of commuter vehicles has increased tremendous mobility crises in Nigeria”. What this means is that there was mobility crises at the time, hence the long queues at bus stations. In the railway sector, what Nigerians remembered the Buhari administration for was the outrageous cancellation of the Lagos metro project; choosing to pay a fine worth about 60% of the cost of the project as fine for contract termination. This action will continue to hunt that administration, as one cannot understand why such damaging decision was made, in view of the potential positive impact the project would have had on the economy, and the loss the country suffered by terminating the contract. On the contrary, the Jonathan administration has made huge progress in the railway sector, when compared to his predecessors. The Rail lines that where hitherto comatose, have been revived. The following lines have been revived, with more to follow: Lagos – Kano, PH – Maiduguri, PH – Enugu, Abuja – Kaduna, Itakpe – Ajaokuta – Warri, etc. In 2012, 4.2 Million Passengers reportedly used the rail services, a drastic improvement from the 1 million, 3 years earlier. As part of efforts by the Jonathan administration to revamp the sector, 25 new locomotives was supplied by General Electric (GE), in addition to over 200 coaches and wagons that have been refurbished. As part of plans to ensure sustainability and deepen the sector, FGN has reached agreement with GE to establish an Assembly plant in Nigeria, that is expected to handle about 200 locomotives within the next 10 years (Source: Transformation at a Glance). Only recently, KPMG listed Nigerias high speed rail project, a project proposed by the Jonathan administration, as one of the global top 100 world-class infrastructure. The rail is expected to connect Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Warri, Bauchi, Abuja and Port Harcourt, and it is expected to cost about $13 billion. In water transportation, the Nigerian Inland Water Ways under the Jonathan administration has also made in-roads. Dredging of lower River Niger (Baro in Niger State to Warri in Delta) has greatly enhanced inland water transportation. Also, in addition to construction of the Onitsha port (Lokoja and Oguta Port are also under construction), the Jonathan administration made bold reforms in the ports sector, reducing the number of agencies at the ports from 13 to 7. By this, unnecessary bureaucracies were reduced. Thus, clearing time has reduced from an average of 39 days to about 7 days for trouble-free cargo. Also, the ports now operate 24 hours in a day. In the aviation sector, the Jonathan administration has made tremendous progress as well. First, the country recorded total radar coverage years back (TRACON). The Akanu Ibiam Airport in Enugu was upgraded to International status. Also, all 22 FG-owned airports in Nigeria are being re-modelled. The airports are now all wearing new look. To embark on such massive remodeling simultaneously, especially considering the financial implications, is most commendable. Also, within this period, the administration also installed state of the art safety equipment and meteorological infrastructure, as part of efforts to improve on safety of air travel. Also, the administration also set up the Accident Investigation Laboratory, the first in West Africa, and only the 4th in Africa.
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 02:16:07 +0000
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